Out with the old media, in with the new

Radio Jamaica (RJR) recently announced the appointment of Yvonne Wilks as the head of its new Cable Division, which comprises of TVJ sports, Jamaica News Network (JNN) and Reggae Entertainment Television (RE TV). Mrs. Wilks will spearhead the consolidation of the media group’s cable properties.

I was a bit taken aback by a comment that Yvonne Wilks made when she was commenting on the future prospects of the cable business. She was lamenting that if television is now, then cable is the future. Now, that would have been a very solid argument in 1994, but she seems to be few paces behind some of the latest trends in the media industry. Technological advancements in mobile and internet technologies has drastically changed how ad revenue will be generated by companies in future, with Google the most glaring example of the shift from the old electronic and print media business to online communities and mobile handsets.

I strongly believe that the local media companies are reacting very slowly to the vast changes in the media industry. No longer can these companies claim to offer value to advertisers, when so many people are interfacing with non-traditional types of media, like mobile phones and the various social networking websites like Hi5 and Facebook.

Media houses will have to get serious with developing a business strategy that is based on a mobile and internet platform, if they hope to be relevant in the future. A business strategy that will include encouraging the creation of user generated content from in the form of videos, blogs and forums. This type of content would appeal to people who want see different types of programming or stories that would have been too costly to put on air, or in print. This would allow media companies to develop and fine tune different types of programming while giving viewers the opportunity to give feedback, which is certainly cheaper than any forms of market research available. Additionally, this strategy will allow media houses to create a buzz about any program, as viewers could download any content and email it to their friends. If there is still any doubts about the benefits of user generated content (videos) and viral marketing (free advertising) just ask Milk, Johnny and Donisha, and Candy. Wink, wink.